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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23515627">Access Denied</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/soldiermom1973/pseuds/soldiermom1973'>soldiermom1973</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>1,000 years (A Reconciliation Story) [38]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Mass Effect - All Media Types, Mass Effect - Various Authors, Mass Effect Trilogy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Fluff, MEFFW Sunday Sprint, Random Acts Of Kindness, access denied, laying on a beach (well kind of)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 13:34:26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,152</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23515627</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/soldiermom1973/pseuds/soldiermom1973</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Kaidan's had a rough day and just wants to go home and spend time with Allie.  Problem is, he can't get into the apartment.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kaidan Alenko/Allie Shepard, Kaidan Alenko/Female Shepard</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>1,000 years (A Reconciliation Story) [38]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1460416</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Access Denied</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Another MEFFW Sunday Sprint prompt - this one was 'access denied'.  I'd had a rough draft for this started, but the prompt had me take things in a little different direction &amp; enabled me to actually get it done.  I'm a lot happier with this than what was originally running through my head.  I hope you like it!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kaidan was tired – his students all seemed to be confrontational for some reason and unwilling to learn the new movements he was trying to teach them.  Even Maya, for her shy quietness, was unusually irritable.  Then the staff meeting ran on an hour longer than it should have and traffic...?  Traffic was an utter nightmare.  It seemed like every other ward section had C-SEC there, detouring the skycars around and out of the way.  Kaidan was four hours late when he finally stepped into the elevator in Allie's apartment building.  He called her when he first realized he was going to be late, then several times after, reassuring her he was most definitely on his way home.</p><p>Allie seemed untroubled by it, assuring him all was well and she'd see him when he got home and telling him to let her know when he was on his way up.  After the usual reminders to be careful, he smiled and shook his head, wondering for the millionth time how he got so lucky.  After he parked his car, he picked up some flowers from a street vendor, hoping it would make up for his tardiness at least a little.</p><p>He frowned, though, when he saw the door lock was red.  Normally it was green – still locked, but people with permission could still go in.  Red was a hard lock – no one except he and Allie could enter.  In all the years Allie had the apartment, he never heard of her setting the lock like that.  His frown deepened when his handprint wouldn't register and let him in.</p><p>“Access denied.”  The automated voice filled the hallway and Kaidan's heart raced a little.  Was she in trouble?  Did she have some kind of 'company' that locked the door behind them or made her lock it like this?  He breathed a sigh of relief when the lock turned green and hissed open, revealing the love of his life standing before him.</p><p>“You were supposed to let me know when you were on your way up,” she scolded him.  “For this reason!”</p><p>“So you could smuggle your other lover out the window?” he teased.  He planted a gentle kiss on her lips and handed her the flowers.  “I'm sorry I'm so late.  Are you going to let me in?”</p><p>“Yup, exactly. My other boyfriend can fly, so it comes in handy because this place is seven stories up,” she laughed.  “They're beautiful.  And you have to close your eyes to come in.  I've got a surprise for you.”</p><p>“A surprise?” Kaidan smiled and did as he was told.  He gave up his bag when he felt Allie slide the strap down his arm.  “But all I got you was flowers.”</p><p>Allie took his hand, guiding him further into the apartment.  She led him through where he thought there should be furniture and frowned when she stopped.</p><p>“Ok, now sit, but keep your eyes closed,” she said.</p><p>As he situated himself on the floor, he heard her move away.  The room got a little darker, then was filled with the sounds of seagulls and waves lapping at a shoreline.  A puff of air caressed his face and he inhaled at the first whiff of salt water.</p><p>“Ok,” Allie whispered when she sat next to him.  “Open your eyes.”</p><p>In front of him, where the picture windows were normally filled with the garish neon lights from the Strip, was filled instead with a view of a beach.  The ocean stretched out before him and met a sapphire blue sky, which was dotted with white puffy clouds slowly drifting past.</p><p>“Allie, what is this?” he breathed.  “It's beautiful!”</p><p>“Well, you remember when I had that party during the war?  After we got done fighting my clone?”</p><p>He nodded and she continued, “You and James were talking about the apartment and you said that in your dreams, you had a place just like this overlooking the Pacific.  Since I couldn't do that, I figured this was the next best thing.”</p><p>She went on to explain how she found a company that could install software in the apartment to bring on any one of dozens of pre-programmed scenes, along with accompanying effects to make it seem more realistic.  “There's a snowy mountaintop, a cabin by a lake, a field of wildflowers...  what?” she asked when she noticed him staring at her.</p><p>“You really remembered me saying that all those years ago?  And then you did this?  For me?”</p><p>She smiled and nodded.  “Yeah.  Do you like it?”</p><p>“Allie, it's perfect.”  He pulled her against him, hugging her tight to his chest and kissed the top of her head.</p><p>She moved out of his embrace, nudging his legs apart so she could sit between them and leaned against his chest.  She sighed and stretched her arms behind her, grazing her fingertips on the back of his head.</p><p>“Oh, shit, you're still in your uniform.  Do you want to go change?” she asked.  She sat up and leaned forward, looking at him over her shoulder.</p><p>“Kind of,” he shrugged.  “I want to stay here with you more than I want to change.”</p><p>He grabbed her hand and tugged her back against him.  Allie nestled back against his chest and wrapped his arms around her shoulders.  He kissed the top of her head, then told her about his day.  She fixed several plates of food – finger sandwiches, fresh fruits and veggies, crackers and cheese, and plenty of beer and wine to drink.  They fed each other while he vented and she kissed his hands and knuckles while he spoke.</p><p>She told him about the meetings she had, letting him know she had to head out in a couple of days for the Traverse.  “More PR stuff,” she sighed.  “But I'll still take that any day over fighting Reapers.”</p><p>Kaidan hummed in agreement and rested his cheek on top of her head.  After several moments of silence, he sighed.  “You're amazing, you know that?  Remembering something I said years ago and doing your best to make it a reality for me.  And it isn't even my birthday or anything.  You did it just because.”</p><p>Allie sat up and turned around to face him.  “We had all those years where we didn't talk and things just happened to play out the way they did.  And now here I sit, the luckiest girl in the galaxy, cuddling with the man she loves.”</p><p>She caressed his cheek and he turned into the touch, placing a gentle kiss against her wrist.  She smiled and said, “I did this because I want you to know just how much I love you, Kaidan.  I don't ever want you to forget it or doubt it.”</p><p>“I love you, too, Allie,” he murmured, pulling her forward and resting their foreheads together, wondering for the million and first time how he got so damn lucky.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Ok, wasn't sure about how to really word the 'million and first' thing, so if you've got an idea, hit me with it because man, I think what I did with it sucks.  *Shrugs*</p></blockquote></div></div>
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